


It's easier to keep going once you know what's waiting

by orphan_account



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alpha/Omega, Kosmo is there too, M/M, Nothing super explicit or triggering here, Pregnancy, Space Whale - Freeform, Time Jump, Trans Keith (Voltron), if you like squint real hard
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-16
Updated: 2020-05-16
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:08:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,704
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24209470
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: While trapped on the space whale with his mom Keith sees a glimpse of his future that's almost too perfect to be believable. In the end, it's the promise of that vision that helps him keep going.
Relationships: Keith/Shiro (Voltron)
Kudos: 69
Collections: Sheithlentines 2020





	It's easier to keep going once you know what's waiting

**Author's Note:**

  * For [ninamyyly](https://archiveofourown.org/users/ninamyyly/gifts).



> happy sheithlentines to (probably) the most patient giftee alive!! i'm glad i got the chance to jump in and pinch hit for you. i hope you enjoy this cute lil fic as much as i do!

The cool wind blowing through the trees caused a shiver to run down Keith’s spine even with how impossibly close to the fire he was. He didn’t think there’d be anything like the seasons he had on Earth in an ecosystem surviving off a giant space whale, but the temperature was growing colder every day and the animals were starting to burrow into their homes for their version of hibernation. 

He and Krolia had been on the whale for 11 months and 3 days now and while they were slowly creeping closer to their destination by the day, it was nowhere near fast enough for Keith. They both know they got lucky to have landed on somewhere habitable after their ship crashed but having to patiently wait for something they weren’t one hundred percent sure was going to happen wasn’t something he was excited about.

And then there were the visions. 

The earliest ones they saw focused on his mom and dad meeting and having him. Getting to see their love story unfold was refreshing after going so long assuming his mother left and his dad was covering it up so he didn’t feel bad. He enjoyed seeing the soft looks they would give to one another as they cuddled up next to his crib and the way his dad doted on his mom when she was recovering from giving birth. 

The hardest part was watching her leave, but it helped fill the holes in his heart and make everything until now make sense. It hurt, it hurt so much to see them leave each other, but to know he was so incredibly loved? 

One of the first flashes that focused on him was his fight with Shiro. Well… not Shiro, exactly. Whoever that was. 

He couldn’t sleep for days after experiencing it. He knew how worried his mom was, but he couldn’t shake how awful it felt to know he’d have to possibly kill the man he loved more than anything. And he knew the longer they were on the whale the higher likelihood the imposter would be able to hurt his friends. 

After how traumatic that one was, they started to figure out the best way to process together. For his mom, she enjoyed talking about it with him. Whether it was explaining or continuing where it cut off. She didn’t like to go to bed without unpacking what they both saw. For Keith… well, she quickly learned how emotionally shunted he truly was. It took a long while for him to stop holding everything in but he was beginning to grow more comfortable talking to her the more they got the chance to know each other.

As much as he hated being here… it was nice to be able to get to know his mom. If he was being honest, he sometimes felt selfish wishing their journey just took a little longer. He wanted to know her, eventually he wanted her to know him, and he reveled in the warm hugs she began to give him every so often. 

Smiling to himself, he took a bite of the rabbit-ish leg they cooked for dinner before he felt the familiar buzz, a small warning right before the flash came. He put the bone down and looked to his mom who stared off into the sunlight, waiting for it to wash over them yet again. 

This time he saw himself, standing shirtless in the mirror of a small ship bathroom with the lights dim enough to assume it’s probably nighttime. Present him moved closer to future him to try and observe more of what was happening. 

Keith took note of his older face, the scar he now knew he would be gifted in a fight against whoever was inhabiting Shiro’s body. He admired how long his hair had gotten, the braid messy from sleep hanging down his spine. The small scars under his nipples from his surgery when he was a teen, fading but still present if you looked hard enough. He looked strong, just like all of his future visions. 

But in this one there was one very obvious difference. 

Keith looked down to see where future him was gently cradling his barely swollen stomach. If you looked quick you wouldn’t even notice but Keith knew his body, he knew his body never rounded the way his stomach was now. 

He looked back up to take note of the expression on future Keith’s face. _Fear._ He looked afraid. Present Keith never thought too much about kids, never really had an interest in dating, was still undecided about getting things removed… maybe future Keith regretted not making that decision sooner. 

He felt his palms begin to sweat as he felt the ever-growing presence of his mother standing close behind him, seeing what he was seeing. She knew, of course she knew. She never questioned it, immediately accepted who he was, but she thought she gave birth to a baby girl. He appreciated it, how accepting she was… but knew this was probably something she was going to want to talk about. 

He desperately wanted to reach out, to comfort his future self, let him know he understood the pain he felt. How wrong what he was going through must’ve felt, but then the bathroom door quietly whooshed open and two strong arms wrapped themselves around future Keith’s middle in a familiar, loving embrace. 

Future Keith continued to shake as Shiro swept away the braid hanging down Keith’s back to gain access to the mark on the back of his neck. His lips barely grazed the perfectly aligned teeth scars in an act so sweetly intimate he almost had to look away. Present Keith could picture how comforting that kiss alone probably felt. He shivered as he imagined getting to experience that level of intimacy with Shiro, the only person he’s ever wanted as his mate. 

Shiro’s arms cupped Keith’s small bump as he finally looked up in the mirror to lock eyes with him, “Couldn’t sleep?”

Future Keith hiccuped and shook his head, still working on trying to calm the tears continuing to spill from his eyes. 

“Worried about tomorrow?”

Future Keith closed his eyes while taking a deep breath, “Yeah. Yeah… I knew we’d have to tell them if it ever happened, I just didn’t think we’d get lucky so soon. I’m not. Well I am. I just. Fuck.”

Shiro kissed his cheek as he pulled him in closer, “Realistically, we both know how happy everyone is going to be for us. Allura is going to love having a cousin for Melanor. And thanks to all the culture sharing Earth finally got the fuck over their hatred for anything that’s not heteronormative.” 

Future Keith nodded, waiting for him to continue.

“But I know why you’re scared. I’ll never be able to fully understand and I can’t promise there won’t be any pushback, but I can promise that I will be there by your side every step of the way. And that you, Keith Shirogane, are going to be the best dad in the universe.”

Present Keith felt his eyes burn as he attempted to hold back the tears that were starting to form. His mom took his hand but said nothing; _god_ she really knew him so well now. 

He heard his future self and future husband exchange quiet “I love you’s” as the familiar buzz started to pull them out of the flash. 

Keith came back to himself on the whale, his food now cold as the ground he was sitting on, and the wolf patiently waiting for him to acknowledge he was there with a look that said he was expecting some sort of explanation of what they saw. 

He and his mom exchanged glances but she only gave him a small smile and got up to collect more wood. 

He didn’t talk for the rest of the night, only nodding as Krolia said her goodnights and the wolf took off for a quick run around their camp. 

Keith ended up falling asleep curled up next to the fire, staring into the warm flames, only thinking about two strong hands wrapped around his middle holding him. Protecting him. Loving him. 

No… them. Loving them. 

  
  


_Six Years Later_

Keith woke up to the sound of tiny feet running across the floor of the living room right outside his bedroom door. He almost groaned, desperately wanting to use his first day off in weeks to sleep in, but he stopped short when the adorable giggle from his toddler filled his ears. 

He smiled as he rolled out of bed, grabbed the sweatshirt he threw on the floor the night before when Shiro (a giant wall of heat) wanted to cuddle and made his way out into the living room. 

The sun was shining through the semi-translucent curtains, making the sparkles on her shirt reflect onto the walls and ceiling. His husband was sprawled on the floor, their two cats plopped upon his belly, content to stay there as their daughter attempted to braid Shiro’s forelock and stick as many clips as possible into his short hair. 

“What are you both doing out here?”

The two loves of his life snapped their heads up at the sound of his voice, giant smiles blooming on their faces just for him. 

“Doing papa’s hair?”

She nodded while she dove back into her bag of clips to scavenge for just the right one, “Make papa look pwetty.”

“Is that so?”

Shiro laughed but then gave him a serious look, “She said I needed to look nice for daddy. Said it was a big day.”

Keith raised an eyebrow, “Did she now?”

She let out another giggle while accidentally stabbing Shiro with a bobby pin, “Yeah, big day daddy.”

Realization dawned on him, mostly from the knowledge that his kid was clearly as sensitive to quintessence as he was. Keith huffed out a laugh as he uncrossed his arms and pushed off the door frame, “Hm, hold that thought.” 

He walked back into his room to rummage through his nightstand. He bit his lip as he looked down at the positive pregnancy test. 

“Heh, she’s not wrong.”

**Author's Note:**

> hello i hope you enjoyed this!! this is my first time writing something like this and it was a new experience that i enjoyed.


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